Critics speak out against Texas' 'sanctuary cities' bill

Critics raise doubts over 'sanctuary cities' bill

Published 5:30 am, Wednesday, June 15, 2011

A crowd gathers Wednesday on the south steps of the state Capitol to protest the "sanctuary cities" bill passed by the Senate in the Legislature's special session and expected to pass in the House.

A crowd gathers Wednesday on the south steps of the state Capitol to protest the "sanctuary cities" bill passed by the Senate in the Legislature's special session and expected to pass in the House.

Photo: Ralph Barrera, Associated Press

Critics speak out against Texas' 'sanctuary cities' bill

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Critics Wednesday said that a "sanctuary cities" bill barreling toward legislative approval in Austin will spark fear and mistrust among Hispanic residents, but do little to address illegal immigration in Texas.

The bill, approved by the Senate in the middle of the night Tuesday, would bar local governments from implementing policies prohibiting law enforcement officers from asking the immigration status of people they detain.

Gov. Rick Perry said in putting the measure on the special session agenda that law enforcement officers need such discretion. Opponents argue that it will lead to racial profiling and hamper law enforcement by discouraging people from reporting crimes or cooperating with police.

"I think there's widespread support for doing something with this issue," said Rep. Burt Solomons, R-Carrollton, who won House approval of a sanctuary cities bill during the regular session but saw it die in the Senate.

"There seems to be this perception by citizenry in Texas that there are some cities, there are some counties, perhaps, or sheriffs or local law enforcement officials, that basically provide — as they term it — sanctuary to illegal immigrants by not enforcing state and federal law," Solomons said Wednesday. "And all the bill really does is say you can't do that."

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The Senate-approved bill would require authorities to run information on everyone arrested through a federal immigration enforcement program called Secure Communities, which is operational in every Texas county.

Senate Bill 9 also would authorize the Texas Department of Public Safety to determine whether a person is in the country legally before issuing a driver's license, codifying current rules into law.

Solomons said Wednesday he did not expect the measure to reach the House floor until next week. The House, with its GOP super-majority, is expected to pass a version of the bill.

Cesar Espinosa, a Houston-based immigrant advocate who led a caravan of protestors to the rally, said the bill already has sparked fear in Houston-area immigrant communities, where one in five residents is foreign-born, according to census data.

"People are just generally afraid," he said. "And a good amount of people are actually saying they're considering leaving the state."

Community policing

Houston Police Chief Charles McClelland and other law enforcement leaders warned senators this week that the bill could have a chilling effect on crime reporting in immigrant communities.

"I am worried about the community policing relationship," McClelland said. "If you are a victim of a crime or a witness, I want you to report it, regardless of your immigration status. And if you commit a crime, I am going to arrest you, regardless of your immigrant status."

He said if the law is enacted, implementation should be delayed until officers have completed a 16-hour training course, estimated to cost at least $4.1 million.

The Houston Police Department currently bars officers from questioning people about their immigration status in the field. However, the department - like those in all of Texas' largest cities - participates in Secure Communities, which checks suspects booked into jail against a Homeland Security database containing millions of immigration records. ICE officials can request that local agencies detain suspects with questionable immigration histories.

Opponents said the bill raises some practical concerns, including how officers would verify a suspect's immigration status in the field.

Neither HPD nor HCSO has hand-held fingerprint readers that connect to the federal immigration database, meaning officers cannot check someone's immigration history from their patrol cars. Even if they did, getting a return "hit" from the federal government's computer system routinely takes up to four hours, authorities said.

With no way to verify immigration status in the field and no charge worthy of a trip to jail, officers and deputies would be left to rely on ICE agents to meet them on the side of the road, critics charged.

There also are concerns about what - if anything - the federal government will do with a possible spike in referrals of illegal immigrants from local law enforcement. ICE already "does not respond as quickly as we want them to," Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez said. "There is no such thing as 'ICE on demand.'"

An ICE spokesman declined comment Wednesday on the potential impact of SB9, saying it has not yet been signed into law.

'Image and reputation'

ICE Director John Morton estimated last summer that ICE has the resources to remove about 400,000 illegal immigrants annually - less than 4 percent of the nation's estimated undocumented population. ICE is operating under orders to prioritize the deportations of illegal immigrants who pose a threat to public safety and national security, particularly those with serious criminal records. Last fiscal year, ICE removed more than 21,000 illegal immigrants from southeast Texas, including roughly 17,000 with some kind of criminal record, agency data shows.

Even supporters of SB9, such as anti-illegal immigration activist Curtis Collier of Spring, conceded this week that, in practical terms, the bill will not change much, "except for our image and reputation."

He argued, however, that it sends a powerful message to illegal immigrants to avoid Texas. "Banning sanctuary cities echoes all the way down into Central and South America," Collier said. "I think this should have been passed 10 years ago. Had it been passed, we would not have the immigration problems we have today."